The Promise Land
Key: The West Bank and the Mountains of Israel are identical.
Abraham was in “the mountains of Israel in the heart of the area sometimes referred to as the West Bank when the Lord promised him the Land. The Lord said,
“Arise, walk in the Land...for I will give it to you.” (Genesis 13:17)
“...to your descendants I have given this Land, from the river of Egypt to the river, the River Euphrates...”
Genesis 16:15; 25:1-2
Before the birth of Isaac, Abraham asked the Lord to give the promise to Ishmael,
“Oh, that Ishmael might live before You! (Geneses 17:18)
The Lord had other plans. He said to Abraham, “...I will establish my covenant with him (Isaac) for an everlasting covenant, and with his descendants after him.” (Genesis 17:19 ; 28: 3-4, 13
Jacob had 12 sons who established the tribes of Israel...each Israeli tribe was given a portion of the Land. (see Joshua 14-19)
He descendants of Judah lived in the area called Judea, which includes Jerusalem, Hebron, Graza, etc. (see Joshua 15)
Read Genesis 15 concerning the binding covenant God with Abraham.
The promise cannot be broken. “the gifts and calling of God are irrevocable.” (Romans 11:29)
His love for the Jewish people is dependable as the sun, moon and stars: Jeremiah 31:31-37
The LORD`s Plan for His Land
The LORD said, “The Land shall not be sold permanently, for the Land is Mine...” (Leviticus 25:23)
Read Leviticus 25: 8-17 concerning the Year of Jubilee
Ezekiel 36: 5 God called it “My Land “
Read Ezekiel 36: keep in mind that the so-called West Bank and the Mountains of Israel are nearly identical. When the Lord speaks of the Mountains of Israel, He is referring to the West Banks.
Although the Bible clearly states that the Jews will settle in Judea and Samaria (West Bank), the media and the world proclaim that it is wrong for them to settle there.
To the mountains of Israel the Lord said, “I will cause men to walk on you, my people Israel; they shall take possession of you...” (Ezekiel 36:12)
God promised that Jewish people would live and restore the land in Samaria. He said, “...You will plant vines on the mountains of Samaria...”
This Word of the Lord has been fulfilled in our lifetime. Beyond question only God could have brought about the events that led to the formation of the Jewish state.
In 1948 after the destruction of six million Jewish people in Europe, a tiny remnant formed a Jewish State in the Holy Land. They were attacked by six surrounding Arabic Islamic nations. Arabic forces captured Judea and Samaria and called them the “West Bank”. But the state survived.
Again in 1967 Arab nations around Israel banded together to destroy the Jewish State. In six days the Lord returned Judea and Samaria to Israel, and gave them the Golan Heights, the Gaza strip and Sinai. Read Ezekiel 35:10 and 36:7-36
The Desolate Land
The situation in Israel prior to the return of large numbers of Jewish people:
Ezekiel prophesied that God would scatter the children of Israel throughout the nations and make the mountains of Israel desolate.
“...when you are scattered through the countries...I will...make the land...more desolate than the wilderness...” (Ezekiel 6:2,6,8,14)
In 70 and 135 AD in fulfillment of His the Lord scattered the people of Israel around the world. A small remnant remained in the Land. For nearly 2000 years the Promised Land lay desolate. Where once forests stood, the hills were empty of trees and covered rocks.
“The land was under the Ottoman (Turkish) Empire Rule from 1517 to 1917, and the Ottomans (Turks) destroyed this land thoroughly. The rulers enacted ridiculous laws; for example, one which required taxes to be paid for live trees. The people cut down the trees so they wouldn’t have to pay taxes! This country therefore ended up in a truly wretched condition.
Many Moslems living in the Land before Israel became a state were not natives of Palestine. Below is a list of birthplaces of Moslems living in the Jerusalem region as recorded in the census of 1931.
Albania Palestine
Algeria Persia (Iran)
Australia South America
Central America Spain
Central Asiatic Territories Syria
Cyprus Trans-Jordan
Egypt Tripoli
Far Eastern Asia Tunis
France Turkey
Greece USA
Hejaz-Nejd United Kingdom
Indian Continent USSR
Iraq Yemen
Morocco Other Arabian and African Territories
(See From Time Immemorial, by Joan Peters, p. 227)
“Jews did not entirely disappear from the Holy Land...Official records listed forty-three Jewish communities in the sixth century: twelve along the coast, in the Negev Desert and east of the Jordan River; and thirty-one in the Galilee and Jordan Valley.” (David Dolan, Holy War for the Promise Land, p.p. 55-56)
During Ottoman Turkish rule beginning in 1516 four holy cities were semi-autonomous Jewish area – Jerusalem, Tiberias (Galilee), Safed and Hebron.
A report in 1864 indicated that the largest group of residents in Jerusalem were Jewish.
“The population of the city of Jerusalem is computed at 18,000 of whom about 5,000 are Moslems, 8,000 to 9,000 Jews, and the rest Christians of various denominations. (Report on the Trade and Commerce of Jerusalem in the Year 1864...see Joan Peters From Time Immemorial)
Arabic people also lived in the Holy Land. Some were settled, but many were transient. During the past 2,000 years Arabic tribes roamed over more than 5,000,000 square miles in the Middle East and in Northern Africa. For much of the time there were no borders as we know today. They moved here and there for good pasture or for jobs.
“...the Holy Lands was inhabited only sparsely in the nineteenth century. For centuries the non-Jewish, particularly the Muslim, peoples in the Land had been largely composed of a revolving immigrant population...the majority of those inhabitants were migrants and peasants originating from other lands...” (Joan Peters)
“Here, once again, we see God’s foresight and wisdom. If this land had been well cultivated and well settled, there wouldn’t have been room for the Jews to come here when the time came for God to return them to their land.” (Ibid. 30)
Israel Will Possess the Mountains of Israel
The Lord said to the mountains of Israel,
“I will cause men to walk on you, My people Israel; they will take possession of you...” (Ezekiel 36:12)
In 1967 in a miraculous six-day war, this promise of God came true – Israel took possession of the mountains of Israel, including the Old City of Jerusalem.
Jerusalem which was occupied one tiny mountaintop in King David’s day, now spread for miles over many mountains.
“...Jerusalem will be inhabited as towns without walls, because of the multitude of men and livestock in it.” (Zechariah 2:4)
I Will Multiply Israel on You...Cities will be Inhabited...Ruins Rebuilt
“I will multiply men upon you, all the house of Israel...the cities will be inhabited and the ruins rebuilt...” (Ezekiel 36:10)
Jewish people lived in the so-called West Bank (Judea and Samaria) when Israel was attacked by the six Arabic Islamic nations in 1948. Jewish communities in the captured area were destroyed by Arab Forces. When Israel recaptured the West Bank in 1967, the communities were rebuilt.
Jewish Communities, destroyed in 1948 are back on the map, for example,
· The Jewish Quarter of the Old City
· Gush Etzion is today Kfar Ezyon
· Kallia isss Qalya
· Bet Haarava is Bet haAtava
· Atarot is the site of the Jersulem Airport
· Neve Yakov is rebuilt
Ancient Jewish sites are flourishing again...
· The modern town of Shilo (1 Samuel 1:3) is thriving
· Bethel is Bet El (Genesis 35:15)
· Mount Gaash (Joshua 24:30) supports the city of Ariel ( population 15,000)
· Kiriat Arba (Joshua 20:7) is now a Jewish town near Hebron
· And other towns too numerous to mention
Key # 2 Mount Sier was the home of Esau who was called Edom
| 
Children
